Faustino Oramas "El guayabero"

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Faustino Oramas, the phenomenal trovador/sonero born in Holguín on June 11, 1911 has enriched the Cuban musical panorama with his picturesque compositions since he began playing with the Sexteto La Tropical in the City of Parks at the tender age of 15. "El Guayabero" has graced the home-grown musical tradition with rhythmical beats added to his popular and funny improvisations.

But why do they call this original artist "El Guayabero"? For more than seven decades of artistic work he has delighted more than 3 generations of Cubans, first in the northeastern part of the island, and later all over the country until finally, his upbeat melodies spread to other cities in the Américas.

The artist himself answers the question: "They call me that thanks to a woman, or rather because of her jealous husband in a little place on the eastern side of the Island called Guayabero, where I went to sing and earn my living and where I almost encountered my death. She was very attentive to me and the folks at the bar went and told her husband, a brute who worked as a guard back in those years. What else is there to tell? I got thrown out with the musicians and on the road back the song came to me:

Woman of my soul don't deny me your love, / woman of my soul give me your heart, / I never thought that one day / I could forget you. / The Guayabero, mamá, they want to give it to me! / The Guayabero, mamá, they want to give it to me!

"Later, the great sonero and bolero singer, Pacho Alonso asked me for the song and made it popular world wide back in the 60's. And that was the end of that."

With his tres on his arm, mostly dressed in a suit and tie with his inseparable straw hat like a "fried egg", very popular in Cuba in the 30's he always said that women were his obsession and that the Guaracha his strength.

He had traveled to several countries and was always admired for the originality of his shows. In France, Spain, Holland and Mexico the audience applauded deliriously for this unique trovador who could make everyone dance to his melodies, not to mention his jokes and anecdotes!

He was the king of the homegrown pun and words with double meanings. But El Guayabero recognizes that Marieta (a Holy name!) is his most beautiful girl, the most spoiled and well known of his muses.

"She is a real person and in her youth she was a precious mulata - she is probably still turning heads - and she was with me for about twelve years." She helped him put his life in order and overcome the ghosts of fear when he was assaulted by them. It's not for nothing that the most popular song of his is "A mí me gusta que baile Marieta."

He also delighted the overflowing crowds at the venues where they celebrated the Festival of Traditional Cuban Music in Spain with songs like, "Cuidado con el perro,""Mañana me voy" and of course, "Cómo baila Marieta."

He has had the highest honors bestowed upon him: Félix Varela, National Culture, The Axe of Holguín, symbol of the City, the Shield of the City and the National Humor Prize in 2002. In spite of all of these awards, "El Guayabero" has not lost his modesty, nor changed his unique way of dressing like an elegant trovador-sonero.

According to the researcher at the Provincial Center of Music of the Holguin Province, the guarachas and sones of Faustina Oramas have been sung since the 40's by great artists such as Libertad Lamarque, with Tumbaíto, even Pacho Alonso and Neno González.

Faustino is an artist who appreciates not only the music from Holguin, but all Cuban music, which we should hold in high esteem so that the younger composers or groups will stimulate the cultivation of this music with an indisputable Cuban seal and project it for future generations.

In these days when the health of our Guayabero is waning, we should recall how his puns even dealt with the controversial theme of the end of life. He expressed it thus:

"Death comes and does not advise you ahead of time. The day it is your turn, nobody can get it away from you. I said the same in one of my songs:

It is the philosophy of life / Nobody escapes / When the train stops at your door / You can't say take my brother, he's older / Let me get dressed or cut my hair / Life is an express train that runs miles and miles / Time is the rails and the train is not coming back."